The Shared Path of Jiu Jitsu and Yoga

Presence, resilience, and showing up again tomorrow

I came to Jiu Jitsu a little later than most. I was already teaching yoga and didn’t think I needed another movement practice. My days were already full of vinyasa classes, private students, workshops, and the occasional silent retreat. I felt strong. I felt mobile. I thought I was doing enough.

But something about the gym across the road kept tugging at me. I’d walk past on my way to teach and see people pouring out after class, sweaty and smiling in that particular way that only comes from effort. Eventually, curiosity won out. I booked a trial class, not expecting much.

At first, I was totally overwhelmed. The pace, the pressure, the awkwardness of trying to hold my own in live sparring – it was so far from the slow intentional rhythm I was used to. In yoga, we move deliberately and breathe with awareness. In Jiu Jitsu, someone is trying to choke you. But even with the chaos and discomfort, something about it stuck. I kept going back.

Finding the Connection

After a few months, I started to notice something shifting. Not just in how I moved on the mats, but in how I showed up as a teacher. I was more grounded, more relaxed. I spoke less in class. I held space differently. And I think it was because Jiu Jitsu was changing me – not just physically, but mentally too.

At the same time, I could feel my yoga background helping me on the mats. I wasn’t as strong or fast as some of the others, but I could breathe when things got tough. I could stay calm in bad positions. I didn’t panic under pressure. That awareness, that ability to notice rather than react – it gave me a quiet kind of edge.

That’s when I realised the connection between yoga and Jiu Jitsu wasn’t superficial. It wasn’t just about stretching or flexibility. It was deeper. It was structural. Philosophical, even. These two practices weren’t opposites at all. They were feeding each other.

More Than Flexibility

People often assume yoga helps with BJJ because of increased range of motion. And yes, being able to sit comfortably in guard or invert without blowing out your back is helpful. But the real benefit, at least in my experience, has been mental.

Yoga teaches you to notice subtlety. To understand where your body is in space. To track your breathing and energy without judgement. All of that carries directly into Jiu Jitsu. When you’re under mount and can’t move, the first thing you want to do is freak out. But if you’ve spent hours in stillness, breathing through discomfort on your yoga mat, something kicks in. You breathe. You wait. You survive.

I honestly think I’ve avoided more injuries in Jiu Jitsu because of yoga than I have because of any particular strength or mobility. It’s the awareness that makes the difference. The ability to listen to your body before it reaches its limit. The ability to soften just enough in a submission to give yourself time to tap without panic.

How Jiu Jitsu Changed My Yoga

The influence goes both ways. Practising Jiu Jitsu has changed how I approach yoga, too. I used to focus a lot on alignment and form. A pose had to look a certain way to be “right.” But rolling has shown me how messy, unpredictable, and adaptive the body really is.

Now when I step onto the yoga mat, I care less about textbook alignment and more about functionality. Can I breathe here? Can I transition smoothly? Can I stabilise when I’m off balance? Those are the kinds of questions that matter to me now. It’s less about aesthetics, more about real-world movement.

There’s also a new humility in my practice. I used to feel confident in my body, but BJJ has reminded me how much I don’t know. How much strength I don’t have. How much work it takes to stay calm under pressure. And how important it is to come back the next day, even when you feel like a beginner again.

Two Disciplines, One Lesson

Both yoga and Jiu Jitsu have taught me to befriend discomfort. In yoga, it’s the long hold in pigeon pose, the slow burn of a deep backbend. In Jiu Jitsu, it’s getting crushed in side control or stuck in closed guard with no answers. But in both, the lesson is the same: notice, stay present, and don’t panic. Discomfort isn’t failure. It’s part of the process.

The practices are different in form, but aligned in spirit. They both reward consistency over intensity. They both ask you to pay attention. And they both teach that real progress happens when you let go of the need to dominate and instead learn to adapt.

The Skeptics

Of course, not everyone sees it that way. I’ve had rolling partners joke that yoga is just stretching in incense-scented rooms. And I’ve definitely seen yoga teachers wince when I mention armbars and collar chokes. But that gap is closing. More and more people are crossing over, and I think that’s because they’re starting to feel what I’ve felt—that these aren’t opposing practices. They’re complementary.

It’s not about being spiritual or soft or flexible. It’s about being aware. Grounded. Clear. Whether you’re transitioning from half guard or moving through sun salutations, it’s the same skillset.

Where to Begin

If you’re a grappler who’s never tried yoga, I’d suggest starting with something simple. A slow class, a breathwork session, a few mobility-focused poses before or after open mat. You don’t need to become a yogi. Just explore. See what lands.

If you’re a yogi curious about BJJ, be ready to feel like a total beginner again. You will be uncomfortable. You will get smashed. But you’ll also grow in ways that are hard to access on a yoga mat alone. You’ll learn to move with purpose when someone’s resisting you. You’ll discover how much presence lives in unpredictability.

Still on the Path

I still teach yoga and I still train jiu jitsu a few nights a week. I’ve had injuries, doubts, and long gaps in motivation. But I’ve never thought about quitting either one. They’ve both become anchors. Ways of seeing. Ways of being.

So, whether you step onto the mat for stillness or struggle, for breath or battle, you’re doing the same thing in the end. You’re paying attention. You’re choosing presence. You’re learning to move through life with just a bit more grace.

And if you can do that, it doesn’t matter what you call the mat. It’s all the same practice.

This article was written by Maya Quinn. Maya is a purple belt and yoga teacher. She’s passionate about the connection between movement and mindset, and when she’s not teaching or training, you’ll probably find her drinking tea and re-reading her old seminar notes.